Edward and the Philosopher Stone
by SilverLilac07
Summary: This will be a Hogwarts AU for Fullmetal Alchemist. It's Edward's second year at Hogwarts, and he gets the feeling that something isn't quite right at the school. Edward, Alphonse and May are in for the craziest year of their life.
1. Prologue

The sun shone uncomfortably bright that fall day. It was as if it was trying to offset the tragedy that had befallen just a week ago. Rather than warm sunshine it felt as though it should be dark and gloomy, rain pouring down to match the sorrows of the people who had gathered at the cemetery. People stood in black as they watched. Most in tears others in complete silence.

An older man stood at the forefront of it all never breaking eye contact with the slick wooden coffin that was being lowered into the ground. His heart was heavy knowing that he would never see his wife again. He would never see her smile or laugh, never taste the delicious food she always made. He would never again hold her in his arms and forget the struggles of his life. Now she was gone, but he did not cry. For how could he when he held the small hand of his eldest son. His youngest clutching to his shirt while in his arms. As odd as it seemed he was thankful. He could have lost everything that night, but somehow he still had his boys. He knew he would have to be strong for them. Nothing else mattered. He knew that was what she would have wanted.

The service was not long and soon after, everyone began to make their way off the cemetery grounds. The man turned to his old friend with a sad smile. She was an old woman, who better than anyone could understand his grief. The man handed her his youngest son, no older than a few months.

"Take them home, will ya." He began, trying his best not to let his voice tremble. The old woman took the boy in her arms. The man lowered himself to his oldest son and took his other hand. "You need to go with Granny now, Ed. I'll be home soon." The boy was only a year old and did not fully understand the situation he was in. All he knew was his dad was very sad, and that made him sad. He wanted to stay with him and help him feel better. Nonetheless he obeyed his father and followed Granny as she led him away from the site.

The man stood at the gravesite long after everyone had left. He couldn't take his eyes off the tombstone that lay in front of him. None of it seemed quite real yet. It had all happened so fast. He almost expected her to show up and laugh, saying it was all just some elaborate joke, but it wasn't, and he had to face the fact that she was gone forever. It was now his job alone to raise his sons.

"It's unsettling, isn't it Henry?" The man sharply turned around at the sudden voice and was surprised to see an old friend of his. A man with dark hair and dark eyes, ones that you swear could pierce into your soul.

"Roy, what are you doing here?" Henry asked. He was very surprised to see him. They hadn't seen each other in years.

"The Order heard what happened." Roy began, "It's hard to imagine it's all real. Everyone is out celebrating as we speak."

"It makes sense. Why shouldn't they be celebrating. He's finally dead, it's finally over." Henry knew that this was supposed to be a happy day for most people, but as he continued to stare at his wife's tombstone, he just couldn't bring himself to feel any kind of joy or relief.

"But it shouldn't have happened this way." Roy continued. "Trisha was a good person. She didn't deserve this." There was a long silence as the two thought about everything that had led up to this moment. Roy had so many questions, but he knew that Henry needed to grieve. He didn't want to overwhelm the poor guy. He was surprised to hear Henry speak up himself.

"Something happened that night Roy." Roy was about to tell him that he didn't have to explain if he didn't want to, but his curiosity got the better of him.

"What do mean?" He asked.

"I realized what had happened when I got home. I ran up the stairs to Edward's room to find Trisha, lifeless on the floor." Henry's voice began to tremble as he struggled with his words. "The w-whole room looked like it had e-exploded! But Ed wasn't hurt, except h-he had a scar on his forehead!" Henry stopped as he needed to take a moment to compose himself. Roy stayed silent, afraid to say anything to upset him further.

"I could feel it!" Henry whispered.

"Feel what?"

"He had tried to kill him! But he was still alive!"

"What are you saying?" Roy was extremely confused at what Henry was trying to say. But Henry stayed silent, once again trying to compose himself.

"It was Trisha. She protected him. He couldn't touch him because Trisha protected him." Roy still didn't quite understand what he was trying to say. He thought about what Henry was saying, until his brain started to put the pieces together. His eyes widened as he looked up at his friend. There was no way. It couldn't be possible.

"You're telling me Edward survived the killing curse!"

"Trisha gave her life to protect him." Henry continued softly as the memories came flashing back into his mind. "That unyielding love is what made Edward untouchable. It was that same love that destroyed him." Roy stood, shocked at this revelation. He searched his mind for the right words to say, but nothing came out, and he ended up standing there with his friend in complete silence.

* * *

A/N: This is going to be a sort of Hogwarts AU. It follows the story of Harry Potter, but I've made some major and minor changes to the point where it still follows the story line, but it's not just some cheap knock off. You can see that Hohenheim's name is Henry in this story. That's because here he is not some immortal guy who was named by a homonculous. So he has a real name of his own. This was just the prologue which is why it's so short, but trust me, the other chapters will definitely be longer.

\- Special thanks and shout out to my awesome new Beta Reader, KittyKatt Uzumaki.

-Thanks for reading, and please leave a review! (:


	2. Nightmares

_**Chapter 1 - Nightmares**_

 _August 27th_

The air was frigid like ice and fear filled every crevice of the nursery. His body couldn't stop trembling as he felt the impending doom lurk ever so lightly towards him. He wanted to scream, to run. He wanted to be anywhere but where he was right now. This was it. He was going to die. Then in a flash everything went green. A blinding light, but he couldn't look away as he heard the deafening scream of a woman.

Ed's eyes flung open, and he tried to bring himself back to reality. He kept staring at the ceiling above. His forehead was dripping in sweat as he breathed in heavily. Another nightmare had plagued his dreams. He slowly sat up and pulled his sheets off his body to let the absence of his blanket cool him down. He looked out his window and saw that it was barely dawn. Most likely he was the first one up. He looked to the clock on his wall and saw that the time read 5:49 am. The thought of curling up in his bed and sleeping for another hour or two was tempting, but his dream had left him a bit shook up and he knew that even if he tried he wouldn't be getting anymore sleep. So he begrudgingly pulled himself out of his bed.

He made his way over to the window first and opened it up to let in the cool fresh morning air. He took in a deep breath to let his senses clear up a little, then turned back to face his room. It was dimly lit by the barely peeking sun. It was enough light to see the layout, but not enough to find the details in the furniture. It wasn't a big room, in fact it was quite small. His room mostly consisted of his twin bed, a nightstand, his dresser and a medium sized chest in the corner that was filled with his school supplies and other assortments of junk he decided was important enough to keep.

Parallel to his bed was a cot where his little brother Alphonse was currently sleeping. He seemed so peaceful as his chest rose with each breath he took. Ed was sure that he was having better dreams than him.

He made his way over to his dresser to get a change of clothes. He then quietly made his way out of his room, and crept down the hall so as not to wake anyone else. At the end of the hall was a small bathroom. One good reason for waking up before everyone else is that he got the bathroom all to himself without having someone banging on the door wanting him to hurry up.

He turned on the water and stepped into the shower. After a second he stepped into the cascading water and let the warmth envelope him. He closed his eyes and thought back to his nightmare.

It was the same one he's been having ever since he was little. It was always the same. He would feel horrifying fear and then he would see a flash of green and hear the horrid scream of his mother as she died. He had asked his dad about it when he was little, but it had made him extremely uncomfortable. So he had refrained for asking him again. It wasn't until he was 9 that his dad had told him the truth about the nature of his mother's death. It had definitely explained a lot. Why everywhere he went people would treat him like royalty, why he had that lightning shaped scar on his forehead and why he would have those horrible nightmares all the time. It was unnerving, seeing as those dreams where the only memories he had of his mother. He wished he could remember something else about her, anything else. That way he wouldn't be so uncomfortable thinking about her. His dad would tell him stories of her, about how wonderful she was. Those were the kind of memories he wished he could dream of.

He turned the water off, stepped out of the shower and got dressed. He toweled of his hair then used the towel to wipe of the steam that had stuck to the mirror. He used a brushed to untangle his hair, then braided it back so that it was out of the way. He made his way out of the bathroom and down the stairs into the kitchen. The clock in the kitchen now read 6:30, and the sun had begun to rise higher on the horizon, making the kitchen lighter and a little warmer. He quickly got himself a glass of juice and settled on the couch in the living room. The main floor wasn't too impressive either. It was a small living room with two love seats and an old worn out recliner that his dad would always sit in. It lead directly into the kitchen where the staircase to the second floor was. In the living room the front door faced the north while the backdoor faced southward.

Edward sat on the couch and drank his juice, enjoying the growing light of the morning sun shining through the bay window behind the loveseat he sat in. Just a few minutes had passed before he heard heavy footsteps descend the staircase. His head turned back to the kitchen as he saw his dad appear. His dad looked up and furrowed his brow in confusion.

"You're up early." He simply stated as he raised his brow and slightly smiled. Ed knew that he could tell his dad about his dream and he would feel comfortable talking to him about it, but he didn't want his dad to worry and thought it best to just put on a fake smile.

"You're one to talk," Ed began with a smirk, "You're the one who always sleeps in till nine." Henry just laughed.

"I'm up to make breakfast, or have you already forgotten." Ed then suddenly remembered that it was Al's birthday today. His little brother was turning 11 years old. It was always a tradition of theirs that whenever it was Ed or Al's birthday their dad would get up early to make breakfast especially for them.

"Right, no I didn't forget." Ed started, feeling a little embarrassed. "I've just had a lot on my mind." Ed finished in a whispered tone so that his dad didn't here.

"Well," Henry started, bringing Ed's attention back to him. "Would you like to help me get started?" Ed smiled as he pushed himself off the couch.

"Sure...Why not?" Henry and Edward spent the rest of the morning cooking up breakfast and setting the table. They had just finished around 7:00am when they heard small slow footsteps make their way down the stairs. The two quickly turned around to see a tired Alphonse make his way down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and yawning as he went.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Ed and Henry shouted out as they spread out their arms to show Al the beautiful morning feast they had prepared. Al jumped at the sudden loud noise. He looked over to where his dad and his brother were standing with huge smiles plastered on their face. Even though Al was still quite tired from just waking up he put on a huge grin as he remembered his birthday. He ran over and gave his dad and brother a big hug.

"Thanks guys!" He said as he squeezed them a little tighter before letting them go. Henry chuckled as he rested the palm of his hand on Al's head.

"Happy birthday son." Henry smiled. Al looked over to the food on the table.

"Wow, it all looks amazing!" He started. He then turned back to look at his family. "Well what are we waiting for? Let's dig in!" Al then turned back to grab himself a plate, before his dad stopped him.

"Hold on. Aren't you forgetting about someone?" Henry asked, as he folded his arms and raised his brow. Ed tried to conceal a chuckle as he looked over to his little brother who had completely deflated. The excitement he had shown just a second ago was now replaced with a look of complete disappointment. Alphonse looked down at the floor, trying very hard to avoid eye contact with his dad.

"Alphonse." His dad said in a very stern tone, but Al continued to stare at the floor.

"It's early, I'm sure she would rather sleep in." Al said, trying to come up with an excuse. Ed was struggling to keep the knowing smirk off his face.

"Alphonse, you are not taking a single bite of this meal until she is down here with us." Henry stated as he started down his then softened his expression and gave a slight smile.

"Why don't you go wake her up and then we can all eat together." Al sighed as he knew there was no point in arguing with him.

"Fine." He mumbled as he dragged himself back up the stairs. Al walked down the hall and stopped at the second door to the right. He paused for a moment not wanting to actually go in, but the hungry grumblings of his stomach forced his hand. He knocked on the door and waited for a reply, but none came. He knocked again.

"May, are you awake?!" He called out, hoping not to have to go into the room himself, but once again there was nothing but silence. He sighed as he reached for the doorknob and opened the door. He looked around the room and his eyes landed on the twin sized bed by the window. He saw the small girl wrapped up in the green covers, sleeping peacefully. He made his way over to the bed, noticing the features of her face. Her ivory skin was offset by her red lips and jet black hair that gently fell over her cheeks. If Alphonse didn't know her like he did, he would have thought she was incredibly cute. Unfortunately for him, that was only when she was sleeping. He reached out his hand and gently shook her.

"May." He started, trying to wake her, "May, wake up...MAY!" May jolted at the loud noise, and Al quickly stepped back. He noticed that she was wearing her pink silk pajamas, not surprising though. May looked around the room, a little disoriented, until her tired eyes found the young blonde boy standing by her bed.

"What are you doing in here?" She frowned, clearly not appreciating the rude wake up call. Al shoved his hands in his pocket and looked at the adjacent wall.

"I'm hungry, and my dad said I couldn't eat until you came down." He said enthusiastically. May looked over to the clock on the wall. She wanted to be mad at him for waking her up, but she noticed that it was time to get up anyways. She sighed as she threw the blanket off of herself and stood up.

"Fine, let's go!" She said as she quickly made her way past him and out the door. Al took a deep breath to calm himself, not wanting the frustration to show. He then followed her downstairs.

"Good morning May." Henry smiled, as the girl came marching down the stairs.

"Morning." She replied. She took a look around the kitchen before she realized why Henry wanted them all to have breakfast together. It was Al's birthday today. She didn't care too much though as she silently took a seat at the table, right next to Edward who was happily sipping on his juice. Al then came back down the stairs to join the rest of the family. He was about to sit on Ed's other side, but his dad beat him to it, forcing him to plant himself right next to May.

Despite the tension between Al and May, They all enjoyed the amazing food that Henry and Edward had prepared. As they talked Ed began to push his earlier thoughts of his nightmare to the back of his mind. It was Al's big day and he wasn't going to put a damper on it by being moody and depressing, though he couldn't say the same thing for May as he watched her stir her tea and take a sip. The girl was never happy it seemed. The only time he has seen her genuinely smile, was while she was reading a book.

After they had all eaten, Henry left and came back with a large narrow box that had been wrapped. Henry smiled as he placed the present down on the floor in front of Al.

"Happy birthday, son." Al immediately went to unwrap it, and grinned like a mad man when he pulled out his brand new broomstick.

"Is that a Cleansweep Seven?" Ed asked, taking a closer look at the broom.

"Sure is," Henry began, "And it's brand new, never been used." Henry felt a swell of pride in his chest as he saw the delighted look of his son. Nothing could ever compare to that feeling he got when he made his boys smile. Even if it cost him more money than he had. Al jumped up and attacked his dad with the biggest hug he could muster.

"Thanks dad! This is perfect!" Al then turned to his brother, "Let's go get the quidditch stuff and go out and test it!"

"Okay." Ed simply said as he followed his ecstatic brother upstairs. The boys grabbed what they needed and quickly made their way outside. It was beautiful out there, with nothing but fields and fields of grass stretching out as far as the eye can see. About ¾ of a mile behind the house was a dense forest and a small river that lead to a small lake that the boys would swim in during the summers. There was only one other house near them and it belonged to the rockbell family. It was a small house, smaller than theirs even. Although it was only occupied by two people. Winry, and her grandmother. They were nice people, granny would sometimes come over and give them some extra food she had made, or to just have a drink with their dad. Winry was a very sweet girl, but she mostly kept to herself.

"Here, you can use my old one." Al said as he handed Ed the broom. It wasn't anything special, but it worked. Ed didn't really mind anyways. He had never been very interested in quidditch. It was fun to watch, but he wasn't very good at playing it. That had always been Alphonse. He loved the game. Whenever he had the chance he would go out and practice as much as he could, and he was pretty damn good at it. Their dad always bragged about how Al was going to be the star of the quidditch team when he went to hogwarts. While Ed would be stuck in the library reading every single book he could get his hands on.

So Ed wasn't the biggest fan of the game, but he always liked playing with Al. They ended up playing the entire morning. Ed was starting to get tired, but Al looked like he could go on forever. He continued to zoom around on his new broomstick, having the time of his life. After a while though, Ed had to stop him from fear of passing out. If he didn't get something to drink soon he was going fall off his own broomstick. Al looked back at his out of breath, red faced brother and blushed in embarrassment. He hadn't meant to tire him out so much.

"Sorry." Al apologized, rubbing the back of his head, "I guess I got a little carried away." The two quickly made their way back to the ground. Ed went directly inside to get a drink while Al began putting away all of the equipment that they used.

As Al was putting away his pads, he heard a muffled sneeze across the yard. He looked up and found a young blonde girl digging around in the garden outside.

"Hey Winry!" Al called out as he waved to her. The girl quickly looked up to see the boy, but then immediately turned her attention back to pruning the flowers in the garden. Al's smile fell slightly at the bashful girl.

"What's up with her?" Al turned around to see Edward had come back out with a glass of water, but unfortunately he had brought an unwelcomed visitor.

"Why is she here?" Al whispered to Ed.

"She followed me out," He whispered back, "What was I supposed to do? Lock her in the house?" May ignored to boys as she continued to stare at Winry.

"I mean every summer I come over here and she's so distant." May then looked back at the boys, "I think you guys make her uncomfortable."

"Oh so it's our fault. Surprise surprise." Al mumbled under his breath. May glared at him for a second, not appreciating his retort, before continuing.

"I'm just saying, that girl is the most antisocial person I've ever met."

"Okay so she's a little shy." Ed started, trying to defend the girl.

"It's more than that I think."

"I think you're just overanalyzing it like you always do." Alphonse cut in. "Not everyone is as…" Al paused for a second, trying to choose his words carefully. "Outspoken...as you." He finished with the biggest fake smile he could muster. May ignored Al once again as she took a look at the quidditch equipment he had put away. She bent down and picked up Al's new broom and looked it up and down.

"I'll never understand how you can take so much joy out of such a ridiculous game." She stated, continuously examining the broom. Al frowned at the girl.

"Oh course you wouldn't understand." He began, "You wouldn't know how to have fun if they wrote an entire step by step guide to it." May furrowed her brow and gripped the broom a little harder in her hands.

"I know how to have fun!" She exclaimed. Ed couldn't help but let out a chuckle as he imagined May riding on a broomstick, playing quidditch. May immediately turned her attention to him.

"What's so funny?!" Ed instantly stopped laughing and stayed silent, hoping she would ignore him and turn her attention back to his little brother. Which, thankfully, she did. He continued to stand there watching the two argue back and forth. It's always been this way around those two. He knew Alphonse to be a very sweet and sensitive guy, but for some reason, May was the one person who could really tip him over the edge. At times it seemed the two couldn't stand each other. Although he could definitely understand why.

Ed and Al's parents, and May's parents made an arrangement before the two were even born. May comes from a family of muggles, so her family isn't very well versed in the wizarding world. They don't exactly have very good standings in it, although they were incredibly rich. They had more money than they knew what to do with. Henry and Trisha had absolutely no money, they were incredibly poor and always struggled to get by, but they came from a long line of successful wizarding families.

So when Trisha found out that she was going to have another boy and Yuli found out she was going to have a little girl, they decided to make a merger. In other words, Alphonse and May were engaged before they were even born. The Changs would get standings in the wizarding world, and the Elrics would get the money they so desperately needed. Title for money. So every summer May would either go stay with the Elrics or Alphonse would go stay with the Changs. Their parents hoped that this time would help them develope a friendship that could turn into something more later in life. Unfortunately all the two seem to want to do is bicker and stay as far away from each other as they possibly can. Alphonse and May both hated the fact that they had been stripped of their freedom to choose who they would marry, and that anger manifested itself in the form of resentment towards each other.

"Whether you like it or not, doesn't change the fact that it's the greatest game to ever exist!" Al began, "And once I get to Hogwarts I'm going to be the star of the quidditch team!" May rolled her eyes as she placed the bottom of the broom on the ground and leaned against it..

"You'll be a first year student Al, no first years have ever made them team."

"Well, Then I'll be the first." Al boasted with a smile, just the thought of finally going to hogwarts gave him goosebumps.

"I can't tell if you're ambitious or stupid." May retorted. Al's smile faded as he turned back to the smug girl.

"You just think you're so much better than everyone else, don't you?"

"Oh I don't think, I know." She smiled with the same smug look on her face. She then turned away and looked up to the sky as if she was thinking things over in her head. "I'll bet I get placed into Ravenclaw." She then turned her head slightly to look back at Al, "And I'll bet you get placed into Gryffindor or Slytherin. I bet you'll fit right in with those big headed morons."

"Hey!" Ed interjected. "I'm a Gryffindor." May turned her attention back to Ed and gave a cocky smirk.

"Exactly." She then tossed the broom back to Al who caught it with both hands. "Face it Al," She began as she started walking away. "No matter how much you dream, no matter how much you try, you will always just be second best." She then completely turned her back and began walking back to the house. Al's entire face went red as he watched her leave.

"Can you believe her?!" He exclaimed as he continued to watch her until she had entered the house. "I swear that girl never has anything nice to say to anyone!"

"Except herself." Ed chuckled. Al turned his head back to his brother, clearly not amused.

"Oh, you think this is funny huh?" He started, "How would you feel if you had to spend every summer with an arrogant, spoiled, controlling nightmare!?" Ed rolled his eyes as he listened to his brother rant about how horrible his fiancee is. He wasn't particularly fond of May either, and there were several times where she drove him just as crazy, but he always felt like Alphonse exaggerated how terrible she was. Probably because he was the one who had to marry the girl. Maybe Ed would agree with him more if he was stuck with her.

"Not to mention I can't even sleep in my own room when she comes!" Al continued, "And now that I'm going to Hogwarts I'm never going to sleep in my own room ever again! It's like she's taking over my life, but it's not temporary! I'm going to have to live with this for the rest of my life!"

"Don't you think you're overreacting a little bit?" Ed asked calmly, not wanting to upset him even further. "I mean it's not like you absolutely have to marry her."

"Oh okay, so I'll just ignore the wishes of our dead mother, that's great!" Al exclaimed sarcastically. He new that he did have a choice. If he really didn't want to marry the girl he knew he didn't have to, but with how poor his dad was and the fact that his mother had really wanted it to work out, he felt an increased obligation to go through with it, no matter how much he may dislike it. If it was any other girl maybe he wouldn't have minded so much, but no, it had to be the most spoiled ungrateful brat he had ever met.

Ed didn't really know what to say after that, and he just ended up saying nothing. He spent the rest of the day trying to cheer Al up and trying to give him the best birthday ever. By the end of the day Al had completely forgotten about the petty morning squabble he and May had had, and was able to enjoy the rest of his special day.

Later that night Ed sat in their now shared room trying to fall asleep. He looked over to Alphonse and saw that he was completely passed out. Despite waking up with a feeling of anxiety from his nightmare, he quickly changed his mood as he spent the whole day having fun with his little brother. He couldn't believe he was 11 now. It would be his first year at Hogwarts soon and he was looking forward to spending the next school year with him. He just hoped that his nightmares would eventually fade away with time. He would prefer not to spend the year feeling anxious and depressed all the time.

He shut his eyes and prayed for sweet dreams to fill his thoughts, but he was never that lucky. Once again he would wake up earlier than everyone else in a cold sweat, feeling like his past would never let him go.


	3. Diagon Alley

_**Chapter 2 - Diagon Alley**_

 _August 29th_

Ed was staring absentmindedly at the cobblestone path he was walking on, not paying much attention to his surroundings. His mind was too preoccupied with the recurring nightmares he continued to have. He couldn't understand why they wouldn't go away. He had always had them, ever since he was a little kid, but ever since his dad told him the truth about his mother they started to become more frequent. Now he was beginning to think that they were never gonna go away.

"Brother!" Ed jumped at the sudden hand on his shoulder and quickly turned around to see Al with a look of slight concern. Al quickly pulled his hand back at his brothers reaction.

"What is going on with you?" Al asked. "You've been all fidgety and spacey lately. Are you okay?"

"What? No...I'm fine!" Ed began, trying to sound sure of himself. He then turned back around to continue walking, trying to catch up with their dad who was still walking down the street. It was early morning and the boys and their dad had taken a trip to Diagon Alley. The new school year was fast approaching and the boys needed new school supplies.

"I just got lost in thought is all." Ed finished, shoving his hands in his pockets, trying to avoid eye contact. Al looked at his brother suspiciously and quickly ran up to walk next to him.

"What were you thinking about?" Al asked, trying to pry more information out of him. Ed still didn't look at him as he answered.

"Oh you know, just about the new school year. This is your first year after all. Shouldn't you be a little more nervous?"

"What me?" Al began, "Nah, I'm actually really excited!" Ed finally turned to look at Al as he could see the pure excitement in his eyes.

"You're not the least bit nervous about the sorting ceremony?"

"Why should I be? I'd be fine with any of the houses."

"Even Slytherin?" Ed asked, surprised that his brother didn't care what house he gets placed in. Ed had always thought that when Al came to Hogwarts he would be placed in Gryffindor with him.

"Yes even Slytherin brother. I don't understand this animosity you have for this house. I mean what's so wrong about it?"

"It would easier to ask what isn't wrong with it?" Ed said, but Al just rolled his eyes.

"Okay brother, name one bad thing about the Slytherin house."

"How about the fact that Cain is a Slytherin." Ed said folding his arms across his chest.

"That's all you got? You don't like the house because one of its members were mean to you?" Ed glared at Al, not appreciating the fact that he wasn't backing him up.

"You don't you know you weren't there!" Ed began, "You have no idea what kind of person he is!"

"Wow, you are so stubborn!" Al started as he threw his hands in the air, "Would it kill you to open your mind a little? Everyone has good in them, even if it's not always easy to see." Ed chuckled at his little brother's naive idealism. Ed had accepted the fact that Al had always been the more, for a lack of better words, charming than himself. People always seemed to be drawn to him, and he had a way of making people smile, making them feel at ease. It was so like him to always see the best in everyone. Ed then suddenly remembered the elephant in the room and turned back to Al with a cheeky grin plastered on his face.

"Oh everyone you say?" Ed asked. "Even sweet little May Chang?" Al's smile quickly dropped as he heard that wretched name slip out of his brother's mouth. Al turned a deep shade of red as he quickly turned his head away from Ed.

"Th-that's completely different!" He stuttered.

"How is that any different from the way I think of Cain!"

"It's different because….because...because it's different!" Al scrambled to find some logic in his argument, but grew even more embarrassed when he realised there was none. Here he was preaching to his brother about having an open mind and seeing the best in people, when he can't even be bothered to see the best in his own fiance. How could he though? The moment he began to see the good parts of her, he knew he wouldn't be able dislike her as much, and if he didn't dislike her then the whole arranged marriage would seem more reasonable. Which was something he absolutely didn't want happening.

"Look I have my reasons." Al said, not wanting to explain himself.

"Ya but their all stupid." Ed mumbled just loud enough for Al to hear, but before he could respond their dad interrupted them.

"Here we are boys." Ed and Al both looked up to see the large and beautiful leaning building of Gringotts Bank.

"Hey dad, remind us why were stopping at the bank again?" Ed asked, knowing they already had all the money they needed to buy the supplies for the new year. Henry turned back to the boys with a gentle smile.

"There's just something I need to get real quick." The boys looked at each other very confused. Their father was being strangely secretive, and it made them both quite curious. They made their way into the bank and the boys kept close to their father. The goblins had always given them the creeps, every time they came here. They would always stare at you like you were some sort of freak, and it made them very uncomfortable. As they made their way up to the front desk Ed and Al noticed their dad pulling out a small envelope. It looked to be made of really old parchment and it was slightly tattered, but what made them really curious was the red stamp on the front that read "Top Secret". However they refrained from asking their dad about the letter, knowing that he would not answer them.

Henry placed the small letter on the front desk. The goblin working there looked at the letter and then up at Henry.

"I need to get to vault 713 please." Henry said, The goblin immediately understood and gestured for Henry to follow.

"This way sir." Henry turned back to the boys before following the goblin.

"You boys wait here, I'll be right back." Ed and Al just nodded as they watched their dad leave. They sat down on a bench by the far wall and patiently waited for their dad to come back.

"What do think that was all about?" Al asked, not being able to keep his curiosity at bay.

"I don't know." Ed replied looking at the place were his dad had disappeared. "But dads been acting kind of weird this whole last summer, don't you think?"

"What do you mean?" Al asked.

"Remember? Those random trips he kept taking, and he would never tell us where he had gone."

"Yeah, that was pretty weird."

"And now he's got some top secret note that he's taking to a vault that isn't ours."

"You don't think dad's involved in anything dangerous, do you?" Al asked as he averted his eyes to the floor. Ed could see the worry in his little brother's eyes and sighed.

"I don't know Al. It just seems really weird to me." It wasn't long after that that Henry came back. However he wasn't carrying anything with him, which just made the boys even more suspicious. When they tried to ask him about it he simply replied with.

"It's nothing you should be worried about." He then refused to say anything else on the subject. He quickly went back out into Diagon Alley to pick up their supplies. However Al stopped when they passed the quidditch store. Henry and Edward stopped when they noticed that Al wasn't following them anymore. They turned back to see Al's face almost pressed up against the quidditch shop window.

"Why don't you boys take a look around while I pick up what we need." Henry said to Ed as he chuckled at Al's excitement. "I'll meet you guys back in front of Gringotts in an hour." Ed smiled at his dad and nodded as he made his way over to his brother.

"Don't forget to stop by Ollivanders!" Henry called out, before he turned and left himself. Ed ran over to Al who was still completely captured by the latest quidditch equipment in the window.

"You're fogging up the window Al." Ed chuckled as Al blushed at his over excited behavior.

"Sorry," Al began, a little embarrassed. "Just look at it all! Isn't it amazing?!"

"It's alright." Ed said nonchalant as he shrugged his shoulders. Al looked at him like he had grown a second head.

"Alright?!," Al began, a little indignant, "Do you see that broomstick right there?!" Ed turned to see that his brother was pointing at the slick wooden broom with golden lining.

"That right there is the Nimbus 2000! It's the fastest model yet! Just imagine how incredible it would feel to fly through the air on that thing!" Al turned back to the broom staring at it in awe. Ed just smiled at his little brother. He loved how passionate Al got about quidditch. Although it was no surprise considering their mother was a star player when she went to Hogwarts. Trisha was the seeker for the Gryffindor team, and some would say she was the best in the whole school. Henry had said that Al was already so much like their mother. So the fact that he inherited her love for the game came as no surprise to him.

"You really get into this kind of stuff don't you?" Ed smiled, as Al turned back to him.

"And to think, soon I'll be flying around the quidditch field at Hogwarts." Ed's smile fell slightly as he remembered the conversation that they had had with May on Al's birthday.

"You know Al, I'm not one to agree with anything the little bean sprout has to say, but she did have a point about making the team."

"Not you too!" Al began, not wanting to hear the same conversation again.

"Al, they don't even let first years try out." Al turned back to the window with a frown not wanting to hear the realistic views of his older brother. Ed sighed as he tried to think of a way to cheer Al up. He looked around and spotted the pet shop across the street.

"Hey Al, check it out." Ed said as he pointed over to the shop. Al turned around and smiled as he saw all the little cute animals in the window.

"We still haven't gotten your pet. You wanna take a look?" Ed knew how much Al loved cute little animals and wouldn't be able to resist. Al smiled at his brother as he began pulling him over to the shop. A small bell rang out as the two entered the shop. The store was filled with different creatures of all shapes and sizes. There were toads, lizards, and rodents lining the walls, as dogs and cats ran around in pens on the floor. On the second landing of the shop were cages filled with different owls of all kinds. Ed turned to ask Al what kind of animal he waned, but quickly noticed that he had already made his way over to where the newborn kittens were waddling around.

Al was grinning ear to ear as the many little kittens ran around him. He sat down and let them crawl up into his lap. He picked a little ginger kitten up and let it burrow its head into the crook of his neck. He chuckled as the kitten began to purr softly.

"It's amazing how predictable you are Al." Ed said as he looked down at his brother nuzzling with the cat.

"Oh come on," Al began as he held out the small creature. "Look at him and tell me he's not the cutest little thing you've ever seen."

"Yeah yeah, he's adorable." Ed said as he rolled his eyes. "But shouldn't you maybe pick something more practical?" Ed then pointed up to where the owls were.

"Like maybe an owl? That way you can send mail anytime you want." Al frowned at his brother and snuggled closer to the little cat.

"Yeah but can they cuddle with you?" Al asked.

"You could try, but I don't think they'd like that all too much."

"Exactly! Besides if I wanna send a package I can just use Iris."

"Iris is an elf owl Al." Ed said as he folded his arms, "She can barley carry a quill."

"So why did you pick her?"

"She called to me okay?" Al smiled as he turned back to the little ginger kitten.

"And this one is calling to me." He said as he stood up. He turned and walked over to where the cashier was standing, holding the kitten close to his chest where it continued to purr.

"How much for the kitten sir?" Al asked, looking up at unkempt and stoic man behind the register. The man simply pointed o the sign next to him where the prices of all the animals were listed. Al scanned the list until he spotted the kitten price at five galleons. Al turned back to Ed in anticipation.

"It's five galleons brother." Ed sighed as he dug around in his pocket for the money his dad had entrusted him with. Ed quickly paid the man and the two left the shop. Al gleefully walked down the street with his new little friend.

"I think I'm gonna name you Arlo." Al smiled. Ed chuckled at his brother before checking the time on a clock hanging by a shop window. He saw that it was about half an hour before they were supposed to meet up with their dad at the bank again.

"Come on Al, we've got to head over to Ollivanders and get your wand." Ed began, "We only have 30 minutes until we have to meet up with dad." Al nodded and followed Ed down the street to he old shop. As they entered the eccentric old Ollivander was organizing some of his shelves. Which seemed odd considering that every time the boys had come into the shop or looked through the windows, the store had always been in disarray. Although looking at it now it seemed more like organized chaos than an actual mess. Ollivander quickly turned to the boys and smiled.

"Ahh Edward, so good to see you again." He made his way over, immediately forgetting about the wands he had been putting away.

"I hope you are treating your wand well." He finished.

"Of course Mr. Ollivander." Ed replied. He still remembered the day he got his wand. It was an 11in English Oak, with a phoenix feather core. However today was his little brothers turn for his first wand.

"This is my little brother-"

"Alphonse...Of course." Mr. Ollivander finished looking at young Al.

"I have been waiting for you my boy."

"You have?" Al asked a little put of by the man's eccentric nature. He turned to Ed who just rolled his eyes and leaned in close.

"Just go with it." He whispered. Al turned back to Mr. Ollivander, but noticed he had scurried off to his stacks of wand cases and was currently rifling through a pile. As he pulled one out he inspected it closely before coming back to the two. He pulled the wand out and gestured for Al to take it. Al handed Arlo over to Ed and took the wand in his hands. He was a little confused though as he looked up at the old man wondering what he was to do with the wand.

"Well...Give it a wave." Mr. Ollivander said as if it should have been obvious. Al looked down at the wand for a second before turning to a stack of papers in the corner of the shop. He gave the wand a quick swish. The pile of papers exploded and flew across the whole shop, scattering them all over. Al quickly lowered his hand and blushed.

"Oh I'm so sorry Mr. Ollivander, I didn't mean to!"

"Nope, that's not right!" Mr. Ollivander said as he immediately took the wand from Al's grasp. He put it back in it's case and scurried back into the stacks to search for another wand.

"Is this how he always works?" Al whispered to his brother, not taking his eyes off the odd shop keeper.

"Yeah pretty much. I got my wand on my third try." Ed said, remembering how he had split the old man's desk in two. Mr. Ollivander came back with another wand, but as Al tried to use it, it shattered a vase of flowers sitting on his desk. The third try ended with a broken window and the fourth tipped an entire stack of wands over onto the floor. Al quickly put down the fourth wand and looked up to with a sheepish look, but the old man disregarded him as he hurried back for a fifth wand.

"The next one has to be the one, right?!" Al asked Ed a little panicked, as he looked at all the damage he was doing to the poor man's shop.

"I couldn't possibly break anything more!"

"Calm down Al. Everything is fine, this is just how he works." Ed said trying to comfort him a little. Once again Mr. Ollivander came back with another wand. It was fairly long and had a beautiful light color that seemed to swirl around the wand. Al nervously took it in his hands, however this time it felt warmer than the other times. It felt very comfortable in his hand and he let a small smile crack through his nervous facade. He looked back at the broken shop and hesitated for a moment, so nervous that he was going to break even more. He closed his eyes and moved the wand ever so slightly. Instead of feeling the rush of exploding papers or broken glass, he felt at ease and slightly warm in his chest. He opened his eyes and was amazed at what he saw. All around him shards of broken glass danced as it reflected colors of all kinds. It was like a glittering rainbow had flown into the shop.

"Brother, are you seeing this?!" Al grinned as he turned back to his brother. Ed turned back to Al and grinned as well.

"Amazing, isn't it?"

The shards began to form back into their original state. The window was soon repaired, as was the mirror.

"That my boy," Mr. Ollivander began, "Is a 13in Larch Wood wand, with a unicorn hair core. A perfect fit. Take good care of it." Al looked up at the smiling old man as he held his wand firmly in his hands. He couldn't believe he had his own wand. For the first time everything became all too real for him. He was actually going to the greatest wizarding school in the world, and he had just gotten his first wand ever. The excitement was almost to much to bear, and he wanted to hold on to this feeling for as long as he possibly could. He couldn't wait for his first year at Hogwarts to begin.


End file.
